Pharaoh is not a desire for material well-being: money, fame, knowledge, food, and sex. Any person in the world has such desires. Pharaoh is the name for the spiritual resistance that arises in us.

Therefore, on one hand, we need to fight with Pharaoh, but on the other hand, we need to learn to work with him. No desire can be neglected. All of them were created by the Creator, and we only need to organize them correctly.

I cannot cut off and throw away some of my desires, because then they will be lacking in my system. I must bring all desires to final correction.

No matter what desires are revealed in me, I must transfer everything into giving to the group and through it to the Creator, only in the form “From love for the creatures to love for the Creator.”

Advancement occurs precisely due to our mutual inclusion in each other. The smaller the distance between us, the closer we get, the closer we will become to the Creator. We will begin to feel that this is the same distance.

And then we will see that Pharaoh is also working not against us, but in our favor. He only shows us where there is a lack of correction in the relationship between us.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 4/2/21, “Pesach (Passover)”

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Michael Laitman, On Quora: “Why has the public become more and more indifferent?“

The more the human ego grows, the more indifferent we become to each other.

Contrary to popular belief, we are no more gentle and sensitive than our previous generations. In the past, people were more concerned about their families, their children, and their grandchildren. Past generations planned several years ahead. Today, it has become rarer to even care about what happens one year from now, i.e., such a thought awakens no emotional response. We relate to it as if “Whatever will happen, will happen,” and just continue living on.

We have to recognize how our egoistic nature causes such indifference and insensitivity. The ego adheres to the present moment, and cares about what will happen to itself the same day, and not about tomorrow.

Things were not so obtuse mid-last century. After the Second World War, people cared about the future, and planned developments several years ahead.

In our present times, we find ourselves stuck in an impasse, as it takes a lot more to impress us, if we get impressed at all. We have to reach a decision that we need to change the world by changing ourselves in order to make our lives better. However, for the time being, we are not moving in such a direction.

Written/edited by students of Kabbalist Dr. Michael Laitman.
Photo by Maria Teneva on Unsplash

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The whole wisdom of Kabbalah is how to correctly perceive the nature we are in. We do not change anything in reality except for our attitude, the perception of the world we live in. There is no way we can change reality itself because that is like wanting to change the universe.

We discover that we are inside the forces of nature called the Creator or Pharaoh, depending on our perception. Pharaoh and the Creator are two opposite forms of the same upper force.

Therefore, everything depends on the person. If I accept everything by faith above reason and reveal the Creator in everything, then the Pharaoh seems to disappear. Pharaoh is the incorrect form in which I see the Creator. But as I change, correct myself, and begin to reveal my force for the sake of bestowal, I see that the whole world is in bestowal and love, and there is none else but the Creator. And there is no Pharaoh!

The Creator says, “Let us go to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart.” Because He reveals Pharaoh as the most evil force in creation, He obliges the creatures to reveal the Creator.

The Creator says to Moses, “Let us go to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart.” It is as if he is hiding behind the Pharaoh, and instead of the Creator, Moses sees the Pharaoh: strong, domineering, terrible. But why is this necessary? In order for Moses to need the Creator, His help. And so the Creator hardens the heart of Pharaoh, makes him great and terrible, so that Moses is afraid of this monster.

The force of Pharaoh is growing, and we have no choice but to run to the Creator for help. We want to hide in the Creator, hide under His wings, so that the Pharaoh cannot reach us.

Pharaoh brings us closer to the Creator, to liberation. Who gives the people of Israel all the strength, all the vessels, the desire to get out of Egypt? Pharaoh! Pharaoh raised Moses and organized everything for the escape. Pharaoh is the power that acts on us during our exile.

Pharaoh prepared us for the exit from exile: he organized us, built us, raised us. And when the time comes to get out of exile, he increasingly passes power to the Creator, until we completely get out of the power of the Pharaoh and cling to the upper force, which is called the Creator. With Him, we continue on, and Pharaoh ends his mission.

It is one unified system, working in this way, sometimes by the power of evil, then by the power of good, then by the two together in the middle line. The power of the Pharaoh and the power of the Creator fully correspond to each other, and all so that the person in the middle between them can grow correctly.
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From the Daily Kabbalah Lesson 4/4/21, “Passover”

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Question: What is a creative partnership with the Creator? How should we develop this attribute in practice?

Answer: We need to reach a state where we become partners with the Creator. This is true. A creative partnership with the Creator comes down to the fact that we try to convey the Creator’s attitude to the world. This means that we draw people to recognize the Creator, to participate in creating such relations between people in which the Creator will appear and be revealed.

We create a place in which He can appear, He reveals Himself to us, and in this, we are partners. We together create a place where the Creator can be revealed and we become partners, united in one idea. The more we reveal Him to ourselves and the whole world, the closer we get to the absolute spiritual state.
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From KabTV’s “Fundamentals of Kabbalah” 1/20/19

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As humanity is developing, it has gradually come to a state where it is trying to break through from the introverted existence into the extro one, to come out, to break our past framework, to break away from all the animal that is in us, from all the conventions that were between us.

We want to make a radical reassessment of all values and reach a completely new level of existence where I detach myself from my body.

All attempts to find life in some other form indicate that a person needs to rise above himself. This endeavor must be crowned with success. But now we are still in an intermediate state.

Of course, the world is very confused and does not understand itself. But Kabbalists who see the whole perspective of development and know what is going to happen are happy about such a rapid change in the world, a change in people’s consciousness. They try to explain to them what is happening so that a person in these states does not walk in the dark.
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From KabTV’s “Close-Up. Common Law Marriage” 8/11/09

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Preparation to the Lesson

Lesson on the Topic “They Helped Everyone His Friend”

Selected Highlights 

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My new article on Linkedin “With All Due Respect”

With all due respect to others’ self-respect, we care about our own respect, and not much else. Disrespect toward others can lead to conflicts, violence, political paralysis (look at the Israeli political system), and even wars. Offending someone’s respect renounces and even invalidates someone’s being. To many people, this can be worse than death. It is an intolerable feeling.

Because we are inescapably connected, we must make our connections work for us, or our mutual hatred will destroy us. We must learn to make room for everyone, so they can make room for us. If we work this way, we will all win. If we don’t, we will all lose tragically.

However, there is a good reason why respect is so important to us. Respect means that I have value, that I am worthy. While people will go a long way to retain their respect, they will also avoid many misdeeds for exactly the same reason. The expression “I will not stoop to your level” means exactly that—that I will not dishonor myself the way you are dishonoring yourself. In other words, maintaining respect not only sends us on wars; it also makes us restrain ourselves and avoid doing harm. In this way, respect can make us correct ourselves, and through our correction, correct society.

There is another advantage to having respect. We cannot truly sympathize with others, except perhaps with those who are truly close to us like family or close friends. However, since we have self-respect, and we know that everyone has it, we can appreciate what others feel if they are hurt or humiliated. This ability to put ourselves in others’ shoes can prevent us from hurting other people’s feelings.

At the same time, it is precisely this point that I can press in order to check my limits in this world. I may, for example, tease people or offend them a little (or more than a little) in order to test my boundaries or test other people’s confidence and strength. If they are weak, I will “expand my territory”; if they are strong, I might consider retreating. Therefore, respect can prevent violence by relinquishing something emotional rather than risking physical injury.

The problem is that over time, we are growing so narcissistic that it is becoming difficult for us to relinquish our pride. People are becoming so sensitive that anything that someone says feels like stepping on someone else’s toes. As a result, we try to stay so polite, and politically correct, that we lose our ability to express our thoughts, even when we have no intention to offend anyone. The exaggerated sensitivity of our egos is paralyzing the world and infests our connections with suspicion. If we continue in this way, we will end up with a violent explosion; war is inevitable unless we escape from the grip of our egos.

The only way to escape from our egos is to consciously make room for others, and they for us. It has to be multilateral. Our egos will still strive to feel that they are kings of the world, but they will only be able to achieve this if they are all kings. Otherwise, it is doom for everyone. Either we are all on top of the world, or we all hit rock bottom.

Inevitably, we are becoming increasingly connected and dependent on each other. Even our growing egos, which strive to feel superior to others, have to feel others, above whom they can feel superior.

Therefore, because we are inescapably connected, we must make our connections work for us, or our mutual hatred will destroy us. We must learn to make room for everyone, so they can make room for us. If we work this way, we will all win. If we don’t, we will all lose tragically.

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My new article on Linkedin “How Long Will Money Make the World Go ’Round?”

Business Insider wrote that an Oxfam International report found that between March 18 and December 30, 2020, the wealth of the ten richest people in the world increased by $3.9 trillion. According to the report, this gain alone, which those ten people had made in less than ten months, “could pay for everyone to get vaccinated and stay out of poverty.” At the same time, the report estimates that “between 200 million to 500 million people may have fallen into poverty during 2020.” Does it really have to be this way?

How long will money make the world go ’round? Until all of us understand that kowtowing to the ego is not the solution. Matters will keep going from bad to worse until we change our way of life, our state of mind, our motivation.

The only substitute for the ego, and which will create a world where we enjoy living, is love. That word, which we so readily disparage, is the only word we have to describe the most powerful force in existence: the power of giving.

Indeed, we have built a world that exalts nothing but money and power. Money grants power, which enables acquiring more money, which grants even more power, so in the end, money makes the world go ’round. And behind the zeal for money stands the ego, the engine that drives civilization. We have crowned the ego, let it build our society in its image, and now we’re paying the price for fawning on it.

Joe Biden plans to increase taxes on the rich in order to balance the load on the people and finance some of the financial toll wrought by Covid-19, but I don’t think it will work, not in a society where the rich are the powerful. If he goes too far, they can simply move him out of the way.

How long will money make the world go ’round? Until all of us understand that kowtowing to the ego is not the solution. Matters will keep going from bad to worse until we change our way of life, our state of mind, our motivation.

The only substitute for the ego, and which will create a world where we enjoy living, is love. That word, which we so readily disparage, is the only word we have to describe the most powerful force in existence: the power of giving. We may sneer at these words, ridicule and belittle anyone who merely brings up the notion of love or giving, but we’d be wrong to do so. Nothing is more powerful than love.

Think about this: Would you be here were it not for your parents’ love for you? Would this world be here were it not for the trillions of species that continually create and nurture their offspring? Despite the myriad destructive forces around us, life continues and even evolves because the power of life, the power to give and cultivate life, is stronger than all of them combined.

Until the beginning of the 20th century, this was also the situation in human society. But since then, the destructive forces of egoism in humanity have intensified to the point that they now pose an existential risk not only to our species, but to the whole planet. Now, we, humanity, must make a conscious effort to raise the power of love and giving above the power of the ego—the desire to take for myself whatever I can, however I can, and as much as I can.

The ten billionaires may be eye-catching examples of egoism, but if any one of us were in their shoes, we’d be the same and act the same as they do. The plague is in all of us, so only all of us can heal it. If we set our minds on it collectively, we can shift the paradigm from taking to giving, and become “parents,” progenitors of a world that operates on a new kind of fuel.

In the new world, no one will sit still until everyone is safe and cared for. Just as the whole body has no rest and no peace of mind unless all of its organs are well, so we will feel about every person in the world, that all are parts of me, and I cannot be at peace if everyone is not at peace.

Today, moving toward that mindset is a must. We have become so interdependent that unless we take care of everyone, everyone will suffer. If we take on this mindset, we will blossom. If we eschew it, then we have sealed our fate.

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My new article on Linkedin “Holocaust Remembrance Looking Into the Future”

The Holocaust left a strong mark on me from an early age. I was born in Belarus, in the same place where horrible atrocities were perpetrated by the Nazis against Jews. Particularly in Vitebsk, the city of my childhood, there was a ghetto and an extermination camp where many of my relatives were killed. Those experiences endured vividly in my family, I heard about them when I was little. I was raised and educated by those who were saved and were able to tell the stories of those who perished. So, the Shoah left an indelible mark in me since it was an integral part of my upbringing.

But to people who have not heard about those testimonies directly from the survivors, their relatives, or have not learned those recollections through history lessons, the Holocaust has no special meaning. In fact, the memory of this terrible chapter is fading or remains unknown. A survey conducted last year by the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany revealed 63% of U.S. Millennials and Gen Z do not know that six million Jews were killed during the Holocaust.

When we commemorate a new Holocaust Memorial Day, we cannot pass judgment on them if its importance is fading away. Even in my multiple visits to Germany I found a common language with Germans of my generation who thought one way or another on this matter, but for the younger generation there was no point of conversation, no interest. And that situation is similar everywhere. The youth does not want to remember the Shoah or even talk about it. They feel no connection to it and want to continue their lives without looking back. That is understandable.

Decline is a natural part of our lives. What is not before our eyes begins to lose its value, and in order to preserve and perpetuate it, even to some extent; we must revive it and give it importance as if it were here and now. It is true that there are youth trips to concentration camps in Poland, heritage tours at Yad Vashem and various museums, but I do not think they manage to become engraved in the memory of the younger generation. Even the various ceremonies and events that are supposed to evoke emotional memory usually take the form of a theoretical and political discourse. This way no history can be preserved.

We are at a point in time when we need to think and decide what our approach is to the Holocaust, both its cause and consequences. This is a crucial step. I do not agree with the attitude that pushes us to sit back and regret our bitter fate, not even with the one that calls for us to be proud of having a strong and successful country and to rest on our laurels.

Our attitude should change. But do not expect anything to change, we must foster that change within and among ourselves in our approach to the issue of the Holocaust and hatred of Jews. How? First we must learn who the people of Israel are. Why are they called “Israel”? What is their purpose and mission? Why have they survived as a people for generations even though they have been persecuted endlessly? Why has humanity continuously pointed the finger of blame at them? The answers to these questions are the foundations of our nation, and without them we will not understand the incessant persecution of the Jews and we will certainly not cut off the abysmal animosity toward us.

Why is there hatred against Jews? Since the days of Abraham, through the love of the brethren that blossomed among them in the days of the Temple, a great spiritual desire is instilled in the Jews which draws them toward the goal of creation, toward unity and harmony that the world so desperately needs, but it has not been developed and implemented yet. As our sages expressed it, “When there are love, unity, and friendship between each other in Israel, no calamity can come upon them.” (Rabbi Kalman Kalonymus, Maor va Shemesh)

The peoples of the world subconsciously feel that the Jews do not share this special quality with them, this unique potential for development, this method of spiritual connection, and thus hatred of the Jews emanates from this feeling of frustration. Therefore, antisemitism is a global phenomenon that troubles every nation to a small or large extent. Hatred sometimes recedes, sometimes it erupts, but it is always there, latent, deeply rooted, as a law of nature.

The mighty forces of nature can be summed up in two root traits that have existed since the beginning of creation: the trait of bestowal or giving and against it the trait of reception. And the people of Israel carry within them the ability to connect these two opposite forces and bring them to balance, to mutual reconciliation, and to create a third force in between where the Creator, the supreme power of nature, reveals. When such a force is attained, first of all by the Jews, antisemitism will subside. As it is written in The Midrash (Tanchuma, Devarim [Deuteronomy]): “Israel will not be redeemed until they are all one bundle.” We shall never forget.

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